England out of World Cup after Harry Kane’s penalty miss against France

Harry Kane would have been the house favorite. The England captain had had one equalizer from the penalty spot, tying Wayne Rooney for the most goals ever scored for his nation with 53. Kane hovered over the spot one more as Olivier Giroud tipped this World Cup drama back in favor of France.

Theo Hernandez had given up the penalty. who, as they chased a high ball that was flying over both of them, slammed into the back of England sub-Mason Mount. There was going to be one even bigger.

Kane was close to breaking the all-time scoring record. More crucially, he had the potential to restore England’s confidence, opening the door for extra time and, potentially, a semifinal matchup with Morocco. The strain was agonizing. Kane took his time, just as he had done with the prior penalty. And yet, in a split second that will live forever in his nightmares, he fell apart and blasted high over the crossbar. The 84th minute had passed. And that pretty about sums it up.

There wouldn’t be a late sting, and England was left to mull over yet another sour misfortune tale. The bitter lessons of the recent past were intended to propel England to a great triumph as everything was expected to come together on this night against world-champion opposition.

The goal was clear for Gareth Southgate and his team, and it extended beyond simply defeating France. To win the World Cup, they were in Qatar. An advertisement in the gym of their practice facility read, “We didn’t come this far to just come this far.” England has to “nail this type of game now,” according to Southgate. They fell painfully short.

The attention will shift to what Southgate does next. Does he intend to play in a fourth tournament season? As usual, there will be a raging inquest. Before the game, the manager had declared that he will be held accountable.

This, however, was not a repeat of the two failures that have burned holes in his England resume: the ones against Croatia in the 2014 World Cup semifinal and Italy in the Euro 2020 championship game, where he and the team were undone by caution and a lack of confidence. To chase him away from his post was not a loss.

At the very least, England was equal to France in this situation. They opened doors. They played aggressively and on the front foot after another shaky beginning. Kylian Mbappé was mostly under their influence.

However, when another substitute, Marcus Rashford, missed the goal with a last-ditch free-kick, England had to accept that a chance had been lost. Kane appeared damaged at full strength. Everyone wearing England’s flag did as well.

England hadn’t fallen behind in the competition or suffered a setback before. Southgate and his coaches had talked about their reactions and the procedures to be followed. After Aurélien Tchouaméni’s early breakthrough, which felt like it was promoted, they had to put them into practice. France, led by the outstanding Antoine Griezmann, had swiftly settled into their passing patterns. Giroud came close to scoring with a header in the 11th minute.

When Griezmann passed the ball to Tchouaméni, who swerved viciously and shot from a distance, the breakthrough occurred. There was ample time for Jordan Pickford to observe it. He threw himself over when it approached the corner of his right side. Despite his best efforts, it was insufficient. Dayot Upamecano’s challenge of Bukayo Saka, which England felt was a foul, had initiated the maneuver. Wilton Sampaio, a Brazilian referee, answered negatively. Throughout, he would be unpredictable. It appeared as though he was speculating at times.

England maintained composure, and Kane spearheaded the comeback by engaging Upamecano in a few physical battles and won them. After Saka passed into him, Kane deftly rolled the center half so that he could have a chance from an angle on the right. Hugo Lloris was out shrewdly to block in honor of the record-breaking 143rd men’s cap for France.

In the 25th minute, Kane once more evaded Upamecano and aimed his header for the right corner of the area. As he entered it, he felt his marker sweep his legs away, but a VAR check revealed that the contact may have been slightly outside. Luke Shaw sent a free kick straight at Lloris, who then parried a deflected long shot from Harry Kane.

After the break, England kept up the pressure. After Lloris made another excellent save by tipping Jude Bellingham’s effort over from the edge of the box following a half-cleared corner, Saka started to exert his influence with quicksilver movement off the right.

Following a give-and-go with Bellingham, Saka was the one to earn the first penalty, with Tchouaméni extending for the tackle but arriving too late. Saka moved too swiftly. Kane got ready as Mbappé spoke to Lloris in an attempt to frighten the England captain. It was ineffective.

Adrien Rabiot nearly gave France the lead right away while Southgate furiously pointed to his temples. There was also the much-anticipated foot battle between Kylian Mbappé and Kyle Walker. The French forward won it by shifting into overdrive at the very last moment to pull back for an immobile Ousmane Dembélé.

England threatened, forcing the other team to take a chance. Jordan Henderson’s free-kick allowed Harry Maguire to kiss the outside of a goalpost with a header, but Saka was unable to score after Shaw’s cross. It was near.

At that point, it appeared as though England had a greater chance of scoring the following goal. France had different plans. Giroud should have scored from a Dembélé nod-back, but Pickford made a good save. Later, he did score from a fantastic cross from Griezmann, weaving around John Stones and Maguire to score. Kane has the option of crafting an alternative narrative. It would only lead to despair.

After the break, England kept up the pressure. After Lloris made another excellent save by tipping Jude Bellingham’s effort over from the edge of the box following a half-cleared corner, Saka started to exert his influence with quicksilver movement off the right.